August 6, 2005
Trustees in attendance: William Bassett, Gary Hyman, and David Casoni
I. CSAA President Arnold Briggs submitted the Treasurer's Report, which was unanimously approved.
- For the year 2004, cash inflows exceeded cash outflows
- Funds were used to purchase kayaks for the camp, distribute the annual newsletter,
pay rent for the museum, and assist the camp director with staff development
- For the fourth consecutive year, monies were donated to the Old Colony Council to be applied
to the construction of an advanced COPE course; this year's contribution was $1,500
- Additional disbursements went toward 4 Christophers Scholarships, 2 Shawn Donnelly Awards,
and 1 Casoni Scholarship
II. CSAA Trustee Dave Casoni was unanimously re-elected to his Trustee position for a 5-year term.
- Emily Baird will be up for re-election next year
III. Assistant Camp Director Gary Hyman updated attendees on the situation at Camp Squanto.
- Attendence continues to be high, with an estimated 1,600-1,800 Scouts and Scouters
expected to pass through camp this summer, even though this is a Jamboree year
- The staff return rate continues to be high, at 60-70%; 6 current staff members were in attendance
- The handicraft area was the recipient of a great deal of leatherworking material donated by Dave Casoni
IV. James Wellock's winning 2004 Spirit of Squanto essay was made available to attendees by Arnie Briggs.
V. Paul Chapin, Curator of the Casoni Museum, reported on recent developments.
- Tom Holmes continues to cataloge the memorabilia in the Casoni Museum
- The monies donated after the passing of Skiddy Casoni will be used to remove the museum's
windows and add a farmer's porch; Old Colony Council has approved the proposed renovations
- Kevin Guarino and Rick Emond will supervise the construction;
Per Kevin's request, a schedule of improvements will be posted on the CSAA website
so that volunteers will know when to come down
VI. CSAA Vice President of Membership Gus Swanson described the membership opportunities available.
- Bronze memberships are available for $10, Silver and Gold memberships (voting memberships)
are available for $25 and $50, respectively;
A special patch for Gold memberships is available for 2006 only
- Funds from the sale of memberships continued to be the CSAA's primary source
of revenue for the second consecutive year; 2005 memberships generated approximately $3,300
VII. CSAA Trustee Gary Hyman has undertaken the task of compiling a history of the camp from 1977 to the present.
- Gary has spoken at length with staff members from the period, such as Joe Piche and Tom Holmes
- If you are interested in assisting Gary with this project, feel free to contact him at ghyman@onbelay.com
VIII. CSAA President Arnie Briggs noted the valuable work that the CSAA does for the camp, the staff, and the museum. However, with the same core group of people continuing to do the majority of the work, he asked attendees to consider the future of the organization.
- The CSAA has 587 members in its database, but the number of members actively involved is less
than 100 and has remained stagnant
- The CSAA is limited in the projects it can undertake because it is not a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit organization,
and therefore faces numerous financial restrictions
- The possibility of joining Old Colony Council as a semi-autonomous entity similar to the OA
was discussed in May
- Benefits include a broader audience (through the council newsletter), possibly greater interest,
greater fundraising ability, and continuity
- The downside is that the CSAA would relinquish control of financial assets;
the museum would still remain a separate entity, outside the council's control
- As an alternative to merging with the council, Kevin Guarino suggested that greater interest and
participation could be generated by having an Activities Director/Committee plan events throughout the year
- Alternatives for the CSAA's future will continue to be explored and assessed
Maintained by John Mileris.
Copyright © Camp Squanto Alumni Association. All rights reserved.